Dive Stateline Point

a.k.a. Stateline Wall, a.k.a. Cal Neva Wall

Stateline Point is the southern end of Stateline Wall, which runs along the west side of Crystal Bay. If you’re coming from the car via Speedboat Beach, it’s a bit of a schlepp, but you can absolutely make it around the point to the wall. If you’ve got a boat of some sort, look for Arrow Rock.

  • From Speedboat Beach. Enter the water as far to the east as you can drag your gear and still be on the beach. Surface swim southeast around the rocks and start heading back north as soon as you can, making your way east to the point. You can drop at any point along here (10-15′). It’s a lot of ground/water to cover on or below the surface, so pick your pleasure. Stay as close to the rocks to the north of you as you can without getting sucked into a maze. The wild formations off Speedboat Beach will get cooler and cooler until you hit a shelf that takes you down to around 35′. Go north for granite walls. Go east for boulders on a steep sandy slope. And don’t forget about the long swim back.
  • Arrow Rock. This hard-to-miss triangular slab jutting out of the water is on the east side of Stateline Point and looks like a literal point marking the point. Starting here rather than swimming over makes this a completely different dive. Personally, I canoe over, park, and dive from the perfect ramp on the north side of Arrow Rock. It’s spectacularly steep here. You’ll find vertical cliffs and domed buttresses dropping at mind-boggling angles into the deep. Shiners love this spot because it gets loads of sun, and the trout love it because the shiners love it. This is one of the best dives at the lake.

It’s important to note that you are in Nevada when diving the wall proper, in spite of starting in California if you came from Speedboat Beach. If you descend and surface in California, will anyone really know that you were diving in Nevada without a flag? Maybe. Maybe not. If you start at Arrow Rock, you’re entirely in Nevada. The law says you need one.

Fast facts

  • Access: 500 feet minimum from parked car to water, diveable year round
  • Surface swim: Up to 700 yards depending on how far east you walk along the beach first
  • Parking: Extremely limited (~5 spots)
  • Crowds: Very low in winter to very high in summer
  • Dive experience level: Advanced
  • Highlights: Enormous cool rocks, some cliffs, very deep
Stateline Wall
39°
Clear
7:03 am7:11 pm PDT
Feels like: 39°F
Wind: 0mph NNE
Humidity: 59%
Pressure: 30.11"Hg
UV index: 0
WedThuFri
52°F / 30°F
52°F / 34°F
45°F / 28°F

Stateline Point depth

Depth in feet

Source: NOAA Chart 18665 (1975) (2016 – depth in meters)